Spirit is stuck, here's the scene. Take a look at the left wheel. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Stuck Rover

The Mars Exploration Rover Spirit is stuck in the soft soil near “Home Plate” — this is not good obviously but it’s worse than that.  Not only is the rover stuck there is a possibility it is “high centered” on a mound of rocks under its belly.  To add insult to injury, a left wheel motor stalled during the last motion.

The MER team is hard at work using remote sensing and testing scenarios here in the sandbox.  Wish them luck, they are going to need it.

A bit of good news, another solar array cleaning event occurred and energy production is up another 30 percent.

Hubble

What is there left to say?  The mission has been great so far. As far as I know everything is working as expected.  There was some question about a camera (the ACS I think it was), apparently whatever problem there might have been with the testing parameters.

Today the shuttle and Hubble parted ways.  I am waiting along with millions of you for the first light images and reports.

Now the top priority is getting Atlantis and her crew home safely.

ESA Launches Two Observatories

The European Space Agency launched two satellites last week.  These kind of got lost in the Hubble happenings over here, but not in Europe.  These are fantastic spacecraft!

Hershel is an infrared observatory sporting a 3.5 meter mirror, the largest ever put into space.  Learn more about Hershel and how it will help unlock the secrets of galaxy formation and evolution at the ESA website.

The other called Planck, will be looking back in time to the very beginnings of the universe, trying to learn how it all started, how it got to where it is and what will happen in the future.  To do all this Planck will analyse with extreme precision, the remnants of the radiation that filled the universe after the big Bang – the Cosmic Microwave Background. Lean more about Planck at the ESA website.

I am kind of figuring we are going to learn a great deal from both of these missions, considering how well thought out ESA missions tend to be.